Bookpleasures.com
once again welcomes as our guest, Michael Pronko. Michael is a
professor of American Literature and Culture at Meiji Gakuin
University in Tokyo.

He
has written about Japanese culture, art, jazz, and politics
for Newsweek in Japan, The Japan Times, Artscape
Japan and many other publications for over twenty years.

Michael
has appeared on several television broadcasts and he has an
award-winning publication of essays about life in Japan.

Recently,
Michael has published The Moving Blade: A Tokyo Mystery which
is part of the Detective Hiroshi series.

Norm:
Good day Michael and thanks once again for participating in our
interview. Was writing always a career move for
you or did it grow into one?

Michael:
Thanks for having me. I love interviews, from either direction.
Writing was always a passion, but as a career, it didn’t move for a
long time. I was busy traveling, studying, teaching and living. I
always wrote a lot wherever, whenever and however I could, but at
some point, the writing started to overtake the others. For a long
time, though, writing fiction was set aside, as I was teaching and
writing academic papers and regular columns for magazines and
newspapers. Finally, I cut back on the other writing to focus on
novels. Overall, that’s pretty slow growth, I suppose, but it all
adds up.

Norm: With
your experience as an author, is it difficult for you to read a novel
just for the pleasure of being the reader?

Michael:
I read in both modes, plus maybe a third when I teach. I can’t get
to sleep without curling up with a book. That is pure enjoyment. But
I also read/study books as a writer, flipping pages back and forth
and thinking, “What? She put that turning point on page 120?” Or,
“That’s an interesting way to describe…” and I learn that
little trick. In that mode, I don’t enjoy it enjoy it, but I enjoy
learning from it.

One
thing I learned from teaching novels, stories and films is to outline
a novel. I wouldn’t say that’s a pleasure exactly. Outlines are
tedious. But once they’re done, wow, they’re like an X-ray! You
can see inside! It’s one of the best ways to “read” as an
author. Reading as a writer or a teacher is not as much fun as
reading for pleasure, granted, but it enhances the pleasure when you
do. For me, whatever the purpose, just being immersed in words and
stories is always a pleasure.

Norm:
What did you find most useful in learning to write? What was
least useful or most destructive?

Michael:
I never took writing classes, so I never had to unlearn anything.
Getting rid of my romantic notion of being a long-suffering writer in
an unheated basement room unrecognized by an uncaring society—well,
that helped a lot! It freed a lot of mental space and unleashed
energy. It was also helpful to figure out what creativity means and
how it works. And why it doesn’t sometimes work.

While
writing newspaper and editorial columns, I learned how to write daily
and to rewrite quickly, and how to take criticism from editors. There
was never time to argue with the editor before the deadline. No time
to even to argue in my head! With seven deadlines per month for
ten-plus years, I learned to take my ego out of the equation and just
do the work as well as I could in the time I had. That expunges
perfectionism, too.

I
also pay attention to my writing weaknesses, without excusing or
glossing over them. I think every writer needs to find what works and
what doesn’t work for them. So, I keep teaching myself. That never
ends.

Norm: What
are your thoughts as to why people read mystery novels and what do
you believe makes a good mystery story?

Michael:
Mystery and adventure are two primal story patterns that captivate
people because we live them. Mysteries have fluid boundaries. They
can contain all kinds of odd characters, ironic notions of right and
wrong, workplace details, and they can take us into unseen places to
confront unnoticed problems.

Because
mysteries are so inclusive, they entertain on multiple levels, and
each one has its own tension. Suspense is a constant, even when it
seems to lighten up at points. A good mystery balances its elements,
orders them carefully and never slows the pace. A good mystery should
make you more curious about life and give your adrenal system a good
goosing.

Norm: What
do you think is the future of reading/writing?

Michael:
With qualification, I feel positive about it. Technology can be a
distraction, but I tell my students that now is the true golden age
of writing and reading. Their jobs will involve being able to
communicate in writing and being able to process written texts. Most
of their knowledge will come from reading. In the past, parents,
teachers, bosses would explain things. Friends were spoken with. Now,
those interactions often happen in writing. Get good at it or else!

It’s
possible that things could swing further towards aural and visual
modes of interaction, but even if reading and writing get “written
out” of the equation, I think that the power of story will remain
deeply embedded in humanity. And storytelling has evolved in written
form for the past several thousand years. People crave stories, big
and small, and that deep-seated need, that compulsion, will keep
people reading and writing in some form far into the future. At the
very least, writing will leave its traces on storytelling.

Norm:
What would you like to accomplish as an author that you have not?

Michael:
It’s so frustrating not to be able to get more writing done more
quickly, or at least, more comfortably. But for now, at least, my
goals are rather simple—writing better. That’s enough of a
challenge. And deeply satisfying.

I
try to accomplish small things every day. Getting this answer phrased
right—there’s an accomplishment, for example! Big goals can get
in the way sometimes, so I don’t put them front and center. And the
path towards goals can be winding and treacherous, so I stay focused
on making my writing better in the present moment of writing.

Norm: What
has your other writings and novels taught you that youhave
been able to apply to your most recent book The
Moving Blade: A Tokyo Mystery?

Michael:
Writing in other genres taught me a lot. Writing is trial-and-error,
as far as I can tell, so the more you try, and the more errors you
make, and the more different kinds of errors you make, the more you
learn. I worked in the editorial department of The Japan Times for a
decade and that forced me to read and write and think clearly about
issues. You can’t twitter-rant in a newspaper editorial. You must
convince people reasonably that what you say is right.

At
Newsweek Japan, I wrote for Japanese readers about Tokyo life. That
was a tricky proposition! What was I supposed to tell them about
their daily lives? But that was the challenge, and the instructive
lesson.

Putting
together four collections of essays about Tokyo life really taught me
a lot about myself and about writing. Essays are ‘timeless’ in
the sense of being description and thought, with vignettes tucked
inside. Novels are the opposite—stories with description and
thought folded inside. I don’t see essays and novels as all that
different at some level. The pattern is different, the aims the same.

Norm: What
do you think most characterizes your writing?

Michael:
I hope that attention to detail along with a drive to keep readers
reading. I spend a lot of time observing life in Tokyo, and reading
and writing about it, so I think that comes through in the writing. I
hope the time I spend thinking about and reworking the language of
the novel will come through, too.

Norm: For
your writing of The Moving Blade: A
Tokyo Mystery, did the story
come first, or the world it operates in?

Michael:
I think story and world come together. You can’t have one without
the other. Characters also can’t exist without a world and a story
in which to act. I can’t start writing until all those parts are
developed to roughly the same level.

For
this novel, I had the idea for Mattson, the old Japan hand (which was
the original title: Japan Hand), for a long time. It was originally
his story with flashbacks to an earlier age. But by the time I got to
the full-on writing, the novel started with his funeral. His spirit
hovers over the story, of course, but it became his daughter’s
story, and Detective Hiroshi’s. I’d developed this character’s
whole story and world, but it all became background to the eventual
story. That happens.

Norm:
How and why did you become interested in the SOFA agreement between
Japan and the USA and what made you want to weave it into your story?

Michael:
My interest in the SOFA agreement came from the front page of the
Japanese newspapers. Nearly every day, there is a news story about
something related to the American military, be it war games in the
Pacific, American helicopter parts falling onto school playgrounds,
crimes by servicemen or East Asian geopolitics.

The
SOFA agreements are one of the hidden stories of America. Talk about
mystery—no one really knows what goes on inside the 800 American
military bases in 70 countries. I became intrigued by these
well-funded, highly secret spaces, which are now on every continent.
It’s not as well-known as it should be.

Norm:
What are some of the references that you used while researching this
book?

Michael:
Mostly newspapers and magazines. I was particularly interested in
several articles about the storage of napalm leftover from the
Vietnam War on Okinawan bases. There’s been some excellent
reporting on that. Several very dedicated investigative journalists,
in Japan and elsewhere, cover news about the bases.

There
are a few good, solid books about the bases themselves, but I also
read history books about Japan’s post-war era, and about America’s
long-term involvements in other countries. I also went through a lot
of online archives and databases. And of course, I’ve been on a
couple of bases and spent evenings in the areas around the bases. The
scariest was going to a sword shop. Up close, swords have this
powerful energy.

Norm:
What do you hope will be the everlasting thoughts for readers who
finish your book?

Michael:
I think that humans remember intense moments. So, I hope readers will
remember those from the book. Some are frightening, but others
beautiful. I hope, too, that readers will gain an understanding of
Japanese culture while having a great time with the story. For some
readers, the book will be just a fun read or armchair traveling, both
of which I love myself, but I think mysteries can suggest larger
themes that linger in the mind and add to one’s worldview. I hope
that happens. I work for that to happen.

Norm:
Where can our readers find out more about you and The
Moving Blade: A Tokyo Mystery?

Michael:
My website has more information about me and the novel, as well as
about The Last Train, the first in the Detective Hiroshi series and
my collections of writing about Tokyo life. There’s a newsletter
signup for my mailing list there, too. I send one ‘letter’ about
Tokyo life every month.

Michael:
Next is always more reading, writing, traveling and walking around
Tokyo. The next mystery in the series, The Tokyo Traffic, will come
out next spring. After that, I have a standalone mystery/thriller set
in Tokyo. I also want to get back to non-fiction, so have been
collecting notes for another collection, tentatively titled Tokyo
Soft City.

Norm: Thank
you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It's been an
absolute pleasure to meet with you and read your work. Good luck
with The Moving Blade: A Tokyo
Mystery